| Academy Award for Best Visual Effects | |
|---|---|
| Presented by | Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences |
| Country | United States |
| Official website | http://www.oscars.org |
The Academy Award for Visual Effects is an Academy Award given for the best achievement in visual effects.
Contents |
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences first recognized the technical contributions of special effects to movies at its inaugural dinner in 1928, presenting a plaque for "Best Engineering Effects" to the first Best Picture Oscar winner, the World War I flying drama Wings.
Producer David O. Selznick, then production head at RKO Studios, petitioned the Academy Board of Governors to recognize the work of animator Willis O'Brien for his groundbreaking work on 1933's King Kong.
But it was not until 1938 when a film was actually recognized for its effects work. A Special Achievement Award for Special Effects in the Paramount film Spawn of the North. The following year "Best Special Effects" became a recognized category, although on occasion the Academy has chosen to honor a single film outright rather than nominate two or more films.
From 1964 to 1971, the name of the category was Best Special Visual Effects. The name was since changed, in 1977, to Best Visual Effects.
Usually, there are three nominated films. In 1979, there were five films nominated. Sometimes, no award is given. Other times, a single film is given the award outright.
In 2007, it was decided that a list of no more than 15 eligible films would be chosen, from which a maximum of 7 would be chosen for further consideration. A vote would then proceed, with a maximum of three nominees. Starting in 2010, there will be five nominations. No more than four people may be nominated for a single film.[1]
According to the official Academy Award rules, the criteria are:
(a) consideration of the contribution the visual effects make to the overall production and
(b) the artistry, skill and fidelity with which the visual illusions are achieved.
Dennis Muren has the most nominations ever (with 15) and the most awards ever (with 8).
A number of filmmakers have had their movies honored for their achievements in visual effects; i.e., five films produced by George Pal, five by producer George Lucas, five by director James Cameron (who began his career in Hollywood as an effects technician), four by directors Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson, and three by director Robert Zemeckis. Stanley Kubrick won his only Oscar ever, in this category, in 1969, for 2001: A Space Odyssey (The film's credits list four effects contributors, including Douglas Trumbull. However, according to the rules of the Academy in effect at the time, only three persons could be nominated for their work on a single film, which would have resulted in the omission of either Trumbull, Tom Howard, Con Pederson or Wally Veevers. Only Kubrick's name was submitted as a nominee in this category, resulting in his winning the award, which many consider a slight to the four men whose work contributed to the film's success.)
Engineering Effects
Special Awards
"For outstanding achievement in creating special photographic and sound effects"
Special Effects (Note: From 1939 to 1962, Visual Effects nominations were shared with Sound Effects nominations as a combined Special Effects category. Only visual effects artists are listed below unless specifically noted.)
The tables below display the Oscar nominees for Best Visual Effects. This does not include the recipients of the Special Achievement Awards. They are divided into sections based on the name changes and the winners are presented in bold text with a blue background.
| Year | Film | Nominee |
|---|---|---|
| 1963 (36th) | The Birds | Ub Iwerks |
| Cleopatra | Emile Kosa, Jr. |
| Year | Film | Nominee |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 (37th) | Mary Poppins | Peter Ellenshaw, Eustace Lycett and Hamilton Luske |
| 7 Faces of Dr. Lao | Jim Danforth | |
| 1965 (38th) | The Greatest Story Ever Told | J. McMillan Johnson |
| Thunderball | John Stears | |
| 1966 (39th) | Fantastic Voyage | Art Cruickshank |
| Hawaii | Linwood G. Dunn | |
| 1967 (40th) | Doctor Dolittle | L.B. Abbott |
| Tobruk | Howard A. Johnson, Jr. and Albert Whitlock | |
| 1968 (41st) | Ice Station Zebra | Hal Millar and J. McMillan Johnson |
| 2001: A Space Odyssey | Stanley Kubrick | |
| 1969 (42nd) | Krakatoa, East of Java | Eugène Lourié and Alex Weldon |
| Marooned | Robbie Robertson | |
| 1970 (43rd) | Patton | Alex Weldon |
| Tora! Tora! Tora! | A.D. Flowers and L.B. Abbott | |
| 1971 (44th) | Bedknobs and Broomsticks | Alan Maley, Eustace Lycett and Danny Lee |
| When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth | Jim Danforth and Roger Dicken |
See Special Achievement Academy Award
| Year | Film | Nominees |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 (50th) | Close Encounters of the Third Kind | Roy Arbogast, Douglas Trumbull, Matthew Yuricich, Gregory Jein and Richard Yuricich |
| Star Wars | John Stears, John Dykstra, Richard Edlund, Grant McCune and Robert Blalack | |
| 1978 (51st) | Superman (Special Achievement Award) | Les Bowie, Colin Chilvers, Denys Coop, Roy Field, Derek Meddings and Zoran Perisic |
| 1979 (52nd) | Alien | H. R. Giger, Carlo Rambaldi, Brian Johnson, Nick Allder and Denys Ayling |
| The Black Hole | Peter Ellenshaw, Art Cruickshank, Eustace Lycett, Danny Lee, Harrison Ellenshaw and Joe Hale | |
| Moonraker | Derek Meddings, Paul Wilson and John Evans | |
| 1941 | William A. Fraker, A.D. Flowers and Gregory Jein | |
| Star Trek: The Motion Picture | Douglas Trumbull, John Dykstra, Richard Yuricich, Robert Swarthe, Dave Stewart and Grant McCune | |
| 1980 (53rd) | The Empire Strikes Back (Special Achievement Award) | Brian Johnson, Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren and Bruce Nicholson |
| 1981 (54th) | Dragonslayer | Dennis Muren, Phil Tippett, Ken Ralston and Brian Johnson |
| Raiders of the Lost Ark | Richard Edlund, Kit West, Bruce Nicholson and Joe Johnston | |
| 1982 (55th) | Blade Runner | Douglas Trumbull, Richard Yuricich and David Dryer |
| E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial | Carlo Rambaldi, Dennis Muren and Kenneth F. Smith | |
| Poltergeist | Richard Edlund, Michael Wood and Bruce Nicholson | |
| 1983 (56th) | Return of the Jedi (Special Achievement Award) | Richard Edlund, Dennis Muren, Ken Ralston and Phil Tippett |
| 1984 (57th) | Ghostbusters | Richard Edlund, John Bruno, Mark Vargo and Chuck Gaspar |
| Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom | Dennis Muren, Michael McAlister, Lorne Peterson and George Gibbs | |
| 2010 | Richard Edlund, Neil Krepela, George Jenson and Mark Stetson | |
| 1985 (58th) | Cocoon | Ken Ralston, Ralph McQuarrie, Scott Farrar and David Berry |
| Return to Oz | Will Vinton, Ian Wingrove, Zoran Perisic and Michael Lloyd | |
| Young Sherlock Holmes | Dennis Muren, Kit West, John Ellis and David W. Allen | |
| 1986 (59th) | Aliens | Robert Skotak, Stan Winston, John Richardson and Suzanne Benson |
| Little Shop of Horrors | Lyle Conway, Bran Ferren and Martin Gutterbridge | |
| Poltergeist II: The Other Side | Richard Edlund, John Bruno, Garry Waller and William Neil | |
| 1987 (60th) | Innerspace | Dennis Muren, William George, Harley Jessup and Kenneth F. Smith |
| Predator | Joel Hynek, Robert M. Greenberg, Richard Greenberg and Stan Winston | |
| 1988 (61st) | Die Hard | Richard Edlund, Al DiSarro, Brent Boates and Thaine Morris |
| Who Framed Roger Rabbit | Ken Ralston, Richard Williams, Edward Jones and George Gibbs | |
| Willow | Dennis Muren, Michael McAlister, Phil Tippett and Chris Evans | |
| 1989 (62nd) | The Abyss | John Bruno, Dennis Muren, Hoyt Yeatman and Dennis Skotak |
| The Adventures of Baron Munchausen | Richard Conway and Kent Houston | |
| Back to the Future Part II | Ken Ralston, Michael Lantieri, John Bell and Steve Gawley | |
| 1990 (63rd) | Total Recall (Special Achievement Award) | Eric Brevig, Rob Bottin, Tim McGovern and Alex Funke |
| 1991 (64th) | Backdraft | Mikael Salomon, Allen Hall, Clay Pinney and Scott Farrar |
| Hook | Eric Brevig, Harley Jessup, Mark Sullivan and Michael Lantieri | |
| Terminator 2: Judgment Day | Dennis Muren, Stan Winston, Gene Warren, Jr. and Robert Skotak | |
| 1992 (65th) | Alien 3 | Richard Edlund, Alec Gillis, Tom Woodruff, Jr. and George Gibbs |
| Batman Returns | Michael Fink, Craig Barron, John Bruno and Dennis Skotak | |
| Death Becomes Her | Ken Ralston, Doug Chiang, Doug Smythe and Tom Woodruff, Jr. | |
| 1993 (66th) | Cliffhanger | Neil Krepela, John Richardson, John Bruno and Pamela Easley |
| Jurassic Park | Dennis Muren, Stan Winston, Phil Tippett and Michael Lantieri | |
| The Nightmare Before Christmas | Pete Kozachik, Eric Leighton, Ariel Velasco Shaw and Gordon Baker | |
| 1994 (67th) | Forrest Gump | Ken Ralston, George Murphy, Stephen Rosenbaum and Allen Hall |
| The Mask | Scott Squires, Steve Williams, Tom Bertino and Jon Farhat | |
| True Lies | John Bruno, Thomas L. Fisher, Jacques Stroweis and Patrick McClung | |
| 1995 (68th) | Apollo 13 | Robert Legato, Michael Kanfer, Leslie Ekker and Matt Sweeney |
| Babe | Scott E. Anderson, Charles Gibson, Neal Scanlan and John Cox | |
| 1996 (69th) | Dragonheart | Scott Squires, Phil Tippett, James Straus and Kit West |
| Independence Day | Volker Engel, Douglas Smith, Clay Pinney and Joseph Viskocil | |
| Twister | Stefen Fangmeier, John Frazier, Habib Zargarpour and Henry La Bounta | |
| 1997 (70th) | The Lost World: Jurassic Park | Dennis Muren, Stan Winston, Randal M. Dutra and Michael Lantieri |
| Starship Troopers | Phil Tippett, Scott E. Anderson, Alec Gillis and John Richardson | |
| Titanic | Robert Legato, Mark Lasoff, Thomas L. Fisher and Michael Kanfer | |
| 1998 (71st) | Armageddon | Richard R. Hoover, Patrick McClung and John Frazier |
| Mighty Joe Young | Rick Baker, Hoyt Yeatman, Allen Hall and Jim Mitchell | |
| What Dreams May Come | Joel Hynek, Nicholas Brooks, Stuart Robertson and Kevin Mack | |
| 1999 (72nd) | The Matrix | John Gaeta, Janek Sirrs, Steve Courtley and Jon Thum |
| Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace | John Knoll, Dennis Muren, Scott Squires and Rob Coleman | |
| Stuart Little | John Dykstra, Jerome Chen, Henry F. Anderson III and Eric Allard | |
| 2000 (73rd) | Gladiator | John Nelson, Neil Corbould, Tim Burke and Stan Parks |
| Hollow Man | Scott E. Anderson, Craig Hayes, Scott Stokdyk and Stan Parks | |
| The Perfect Storm | Stefen Fangmeier, Habib Zargarpour, John Frazier and Walt Conti | |
| 2001 (74th) | A.I. Artificial Intelligence | Dennis Muren, Scott Farrar, Stan Winston and Michael Lantieri |
| The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Jim Rygiel, Randall William Cook, Richard Taylor and Mark Stetson | |
| Pearl Harbor | Eric Brevig, John Frazier, Ed Hirsh and Ben Snow | |
| 2002 (75th) | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | Jim Rygiel, Joe Letteri, Randall William Cook and Alex Funke |
| Spider-Man | John Dykstra, Scott Stokdyk, Anthony LaMolinara and John Frazier | |
| Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones | Rob Coleman, Pablo Helman, John Knoll and Ben Snow | |
| 2003 (76th) | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King | Jim Rygiel, Joe Letteri, Randall William Cook and Alex Funke |
| Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World | Dan Sudick, Stefen Fangmeier, Nathan McGuinness and Robert Stromberg | |
| Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl | John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson and Terry Frazee | |
| 2004 (77th) | Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban | Roger Guyett, Tim Burke, John Richardson and William George |
| I, Robot | John Nelson, Andrew R. Jones, Erik Nash and Joe Letteri | |
| Spider-Man 2 | John Dykstra, Scott Stokdyk, Anthony LaMolinara and John Frazier | |
| 2005 (78th) | The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe | Dean Wright, Bill Westenhofer, Jim Berney and Scott Farrar |
| King Kong | Joe Letteri, Brian Van't Hul, Christian Rivers and Richard Taylor | |
| War of the Worlds | Dennis Muren, Pablo Helman, Randal M. Dutra and Daniel Sudick | |
| 2006 (79th) | Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest | John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson and Allen Hall |
| Poseidon | Boyd Shermis, Kim Libreri, Chas Jarrett and John Frazier | |
| Superman Returns | Mark Stetson, Neil Corbould, Richard R. Hoover and Jon Thum | |
| 2007 (80th) | The Golden Compass | Michael Fink, Bill Westenhofer, Ben Morris and Trevor Wood |
| Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End | John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson and John Frazier | |
| Transformers | Scott Farrar, Scott Benza, Russell Earl and John Frazier | |
| 2008 (81st) | The Curious Case of Benjamin Button | Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron |
| The Dark Knight | Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin | |
| Iron Man | John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan | |
| 2009 (82nd) | Avatar | Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones |
| District 9 | Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros and Matt Aitken | |
| Star Trek | Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh and Burt Dalton | |
| 2010 (83rd) | Inception | Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley and Peter Bebb |
| Alice in Wonderland | Ken Ralston, David Schaub, Carey Villegas and Sean Phillips | |
| Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 | Tim Burke, John Richardson, Christian Manz and Nicolas Aithadi | |
| Hereafter | Michael Owens, Bryan Grill, Stephan Trojanski and Joe Farrell | |
| Iron Man 2 | Janek Sirrs, Ben Snow, Ged Wright and Daniel Sudick |